


Scaredy-Cat

by ZoS



Series: Children Will Listen [1]
Category: The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Genre: Conflict, F/F, Gen, Hopeful Ending, Humor, Light Angst, Mentioned Miranda Priestly/Andrea Sachs, established Mirandy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:53:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25960123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoS/pseuds/ZoS
Summary: For the last few months, Caroline and Cassidy Priestly have been conducting a very thorough investigation. The results, admittedly, are not quite what they expected.
Relationships: Miranda Priestly/Andrea Sachs
Series: Children Will Listen [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1885495
Comments: 21
Kudos: 226





	Scaredy-Cat

**Author's Note:**

> Holy shit, guys. I started this fic on August 8, 2019. It was lying in my "unfinished" folder for a year and every time I came back to it, I got stuck again. But thanks to this sudden, unexpected burst of creativity, I FINALLY finished it. Hurray!

"Caroline. Wake up."

Caroline rubs her eyes, rolls away from the nudging touch, and murmurs an agonized, long-suffering "Whaaat?" her voice hoarse with sleep.

"She's here."

"Who?" she mumbles into her pillow, the promise of unconsciousness lurking just around the corner.

Another push startles her awake, followed by an impatient "The _girl_."

Cassidy waits five whole seconds for her sister to open her eyes before launching into her carefully obtained observations. "She didn't knock again, but I heard the door downstairs open and close," she recounts breathlessly while Caroline lazily blinks up at her. "Then there were footsteps and Mom's door closed."

"Maybe it's her assistant," Caroline provides groggily, though she's already pulling herself up to a sitting position.

"Don't be _stupid_." Cassidy rolls her eyes. "Why would her assistant go into her bedroom?"

Caroline shrugs--she really can't think of a reason. Perhaps that--or maybe the last vestiges of sleep, tempering with her usual stubborness--is why she allows herself to be convinced to follow her sister out of the dark room and into the hallway.

Nevertheless, when they find themselves outside their mom's closed bedroom door, she's gripped by dread. This is forbidden territory: they both know that a closed door means utter privacy and even at eleven-years-old (and three quarters), Caroline isn't stupid enough to invade her mom's sanctuary. Especially not in the middle of the night.

But there is no light seeping out through the cracks and no sound can be heard beyond the barrier and maybe, just maybe, her sister was wrong after all--or dreaming.

Cassidy, however, looks as determined as ever, a subtle line creasing her forehead as she stares at the closed door. Caroline knows her sister better than anyone else in the whole world--sharing a womb would do that to you--and she knows that when Cassidy makes up her mind, sets it to something, there is very, very little that can convince her to let the matter go. And Caroline? Caroline is a pleaser; she'll do almost anything Cassidy wants to make her happy (except for watching princess movies with her because those are for _babies_ ). And what Cassidy wants to do now is spy on their mom, and as risky as that is, Caroline will go along because she secretly would like to get some answers herself.

See, for the past three months, there has been a strange occurance happening in their home: several times a week, late at night, a stranger would show up at the house, their mom would lead her upstairs, and they'd disappear behind her bedroom door.

Caroline and Cassidy don't know what happens behind that door, nor do they ever hear the mysterious stranger leave, but they're certain that she does because she's never there in the morning. Once, they tried to stay up all night to figure the mystery out, even taking turns sleeping so they wouldn't be too tired the next day. Caroline doesn't think there is anyone to blame for the both of them falling asleep on her bed some time after midnight; Cassidy still argues that it was her sister's turn to keep watch.

Now they're both awake, and curious, and they _will_ solve their case tonight. Caroline can tell by the tenacity in her sister's eyes.

"What should we do?" she whispers, tugging anxiously on her pajama sleeve.

Cassidy, on the other hand, is the picture of assuredness. And concentration. "Wait."

Some ten minutes later, Caroline thinks that her sister must have some special, telepathic powers because, from the outside, they see the door handle move and then the hinges creak as it's pulled into the room and Caroline's eyes widen, her chest squeezes in dread, and she makes to turn around and flee to her room until Cassidy grabs her wrist to anchor her in place. Her gaze never leaves the door.

When it opens, despite all those months of spying and speculating and trying to see over the banister without getting caught, it's still quite the astonishing sight to witness a pair of long, bare legs step out of the room.

Caroline and Cassidy's wide eyes travel up the legs until they land on a cream-colored, silk nightgown that ends a little higher than mid-thigh, and that's really strange because their mom never has sleepovers like they do--she's too old for that. The truly shocking thing, though, is that they recognize the nightgown: it belongs to their mom.

Following the length of the nightgown, they encounter equally wide eyes, big and startled, looking like a deer caught in the headlights, framed by reddened skin and disheveled hair.

The mysterious stranger presses a hand to her chest as a shuddering gasp escapes her lips and stammers, "Oh! I, uh... hi." She finishes lamely with a lamer smile, an almost placating one like the smiles Caroline and Cassidy usually get from grown-ups, and ruffles her already ruffled bangs.

"What are you doing here?" Cassidy cuts straight to the chase, her tone already accusing, her brow scrunched up in disdain.

"I was..." the stranger begins in a low voice, then seems to remember her attire, the nightgown that looks longer on Caroline and Cassidy's shorter mom, and tugs the garment lower on her bare thighs. With her free hand, she gestures toward the flight of stairs. "I was just going to get some water."

"No," Caroline continues her sister's train of thought, studying the woman carefully, "what are you doing in our house?"

The woman looks completely bewildered at the question, caught off guard and racking her brains for an answer--an excuse, Caroline and Cassidy know. She keeps anxiously fiddling with the nightgown, pulling it down as far as it will go, as if the girls have never seen a pair of legs. Then she smiles again, even more awkwardly than before.

"You probably don't remember me," she says and looks between the sisters, her smile now more of a grimace. "I'm Andy, I used to be your mom's assistant. We actually met a few times, remember--"

"I know who you are," Cassidy interrupts, her face stone-cold and unyielding, and the woman's gaze shifts to her. From the corner of her eye, she sees Caroline turn to her as well: an unspoken "You do?"

"O-oh," the woman--Andy--stutters. "Great, so--"

"You're the person who's been sneaking into our house at night for weeks."

Andy's eyes widen again; she's taken aback again, rendered speechless in the face of Cassidy's accusation, and Caroline, too, turns back to scrutinize her with smug expectation. She's up against the wall now--quite literally: trapped between them and the bedroom door--and Caroline and Cassidy are _finally_ going to get some answers. They feel triumphant, and brave, and incredibly mature for conducting this complicated--but ultimately successful--investigation and uncovering their mom's secret all on their own.

"Um..." Andy's eyes shift between the two of them--can she even tell them apart if she claims to have "met them?"--and she gulps visibly, her forehead crinkled in a frown. "Maybe we should... maybe you should ask your mom--" She gesturs to the door behind her, left slightly ajar, but Cassidy stops her resolutely.

" _No_ ," she insists, though Caroline knows it's two thirds curiosity and determination and one third fear of getting in trouble because their mom would definitely not be a scaredy-cat like this woman. Besides, they've come this far and they will finish what they started. "You tell us."

There's a pregnant silence following Cassidy's demand. They're in a standoff: two eleven-year-olds (and three quarters) up against a grown-up stranger, between them the key to unlocking Caroline and Cassidy's mom's secrets.

Andy quietly closes the door behind her and inches closer. "Well..." she begins with a cringe, looking as tortured as if she were having her fingernails pulled out one by one. "Well, you know, I used to work for your mom, like I said. And after I q-- after I stopped working for her, we kept in touch. Actually, it was a while after that--" she starts to ramble but stops herself, looking back at her tormentors.

"Anyway, we... we kept in touch," she finishes with a feeble shrug that leaves her interrogators even more baffled than before. "Keeping in touch" doesn't explain anything. It means meeting for coffee and talking on the phone, not sneaking in and out of their mom's bedroom in the middle of the night.

"And?" Caroline prompts impatiently when it's apparent that Andy has no more to add, that she thinks they're stupid enough--a couple of _suckers_ \--to be left with her non-answer.

"And..." she continues, looking almost pained now, and pulls on the hem of their mom's nightgown again. "We became friends. More than friends," she says in a high-pitched tone and finally, with a nod, settles on "Close."

"What does that even mean?" Cassidy questions with a scornful look.

"It, uh... what does it mean?" She licks her lips. "It means... it means that we're... well... well, you know how your mom had boyfriends before m-- before?"

"Yeah?" Caroline drawls, her forehead creased in confused suspicion.

"Well," Andy says for what must be the millionth time, "it's like that."

"Like what?" Cassidy mirrors her sister's thought, both growing agitated with the suspence, Andy's vagueness, and the imminent threat of their mom's rising.

It's only after Cassidy silently weighs the pros and cons of dragging Andy to her room and having her explain everything behind the safety of a closed door that the woman stammers, "Like... when she had boyfriends." And then the penny finally drops.

Well, for one sibling, at least. "You're helping her find a boyfriend?" Caroline questions, her face scrunched up with due dubiousness.

Cassidy rolls her eyes so hard it almost hurts. But when they return to their rightful position, she fixes them on Andy in a scathing glare, even as her words are directed at her sister. "No, stupid, _she's_ the boyfriend."

"But..." Caroline stammers, her face morphing into an expression of further perplexion, "you're a girl..."

Andy closes her eyes, sighs, and swallows in that order. "I... yes." Then her eyes open urgently. "I mean, no. I'm not... her boyfriend, obviously. I'm her... girlfriend. Kind of. I think."

"But... you're a girl," Caroline repeats, but her eyes are beginning to grow with realization.

"And so's Mom," Cassidy provides, practically spitting the words out.

"Well... yeah," Andy says helplessly and shrugs her shoulder again.

"How does that even work?" Caroline asks, but before Andy can form a reaction beyond terrified, widening eyes, Cassidy cuts in.

"What if we don't like it?"

Caroline catches her train of thought and folds her arms against her chest, skewering Andy with her own glare. "We can tell Mom that we don't want you to be her girlfriend."

Now Andy looks well and truly horrified, eyes flitting between the two faces. "You... you would?"

Cassidy folds her arms as well, mimicking her sister. She cocks her head slightly to the side like she's seen her mom do on countless occasions and narrows her eyes into thin slits. "Our mom does everything we want," she says haughtily. Caroline nods in confirmation.

They watch in satisfaction as the color slowly drains from Andy's face, taking great pleasure in witnessing the effectiveness of their impeccable scaring techniques.

"But I..." Andy begins and now her hands are visibly shaking. Caroline feels only slightly sorry for her, but Cassidy relishes her reaction. "I was hoping you'd like me. I-- I like you."

She barely seems to convince herself with that statement and Cassidy scoffs. "No, you don't." Before Andy can argue, she rebukes her, "If you did, you wouldn't hide from us."

"I'm not hiding," Andy is quick to protest. Too quick.

"Yeah?" Caroline chimes in. "Then why do we never see you?"

"Yeah, you only come after we're asleep."

"And you never stay in the morning."

"I--" she stammers again, appearing speechless. Her eyes dart from one sister to the other before briefly settling on the floor. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were-- I mean, I didn't mean it like that."

"Like what?" Cassidy persists, ruthless.

Andy inhales, preparing to speak again, then squints at her. "I'm sorry, you're..." she falters, unable--undaring--to ask the question most adults ask shamelessly.

Cassidy takes the golden opportunity, her eyes twinkling with barely contained mirth, but her face betraying nothing when she replies, "Caroline." Her sister, who instantly catches on, nods again. She's less subtle in hiding her mischief, but Andy doesn't seem to notice. Clearly, their mom can do much better.

"Caroline," Andy says. The real Caroline has to press her lips into a very tight line to keep from laughing. "I never meant to hurt you or make you feel like your mom and I were hiding something from you. I respect you," she adds very unconvincingly. "And I respect your mom, and she wanted to wait until she was ready to tell you guys."

Cassidy rolls her eyes again and makes extra sure to show it. "Please," Caroline says in her place, "she wouldn't have."

"She's just gonna keep hiding you till she gets sick of you," Cassidy adds, pure contempt dripping from her tone. "Then she'll dump you," she continues with a casual, careless shrug, "like she does with all the other guys."

Andy's eyes widen, once again, in horror, but before she can argue or cry like a big, little baby, Caroline adds with a mean smirk, "She only introduces us to the ones she actually likes."

Looking pitiful, Andy asks, "You think she doesn't like me?"

"We don't think," Cassidy says.

"We know," Caroline finishes.

Andy clears her throat, swallows, and wraps her arms around herself. "Well," she begins, "that's a shame. Because I really like her. And, if you let me, I think I can grow to really like you, too. I think we can all like each other."

Making a derisive _pfft_ sound, Cassidy proclaims, "I'll never like you."

"Me neither," Caroline chimes in.

They stare at each other then, Cassidy's hands planted firmly on her hips in defiance, Caroline mirroring the position, Andy looking between them, speechless. Possibly trying to call their bluff, but for all intents and purposes, she looks at a loss. Caroline and Cassidy might be better at this than their mom.

"That's too bad then," Andy finally says, though her voice is not quite as timid as before. It's confident, actually, and she crosses her arms for emphasis. It makes Caroline deflate just a little, at least in confusion at the change of attitude, and she drops her arms at her sides while Cassidy glares harder.

"Because I'm not going anywhere," Andy continues. Then, remarkably, she takes a step toward them. "And you know what? I don't think you really want me to." Cassidy immediately opens her mouth to object, but at the most crucial moment, she's at a loss for words. Andy speaks for her, but now her tone is decidedly gentler, and she even gives them a small smile. "I think you're worried about your mom. She's been hurt by a lot of people, hasn't she?" It should sound patronizing; it doesn't.

Caroline nods slowly, feebly, and Cassidy directs the most scariest glare at her. "Yeah," Andy affirms, then presses a hand to her chest. "But I-I'm not going to hurt her. Not intentionally."

"That's not good enough," Cassidy grinds out through her teeth.

"I know." Andy nods. "But that's all I can promise right now. Just like your mom can't promise not to hurt me. But we're-we're trying really hard, okay? And I think... I think we should all try. To get along, you know?"

"And if we don't?" Cassidy questions, although the fight is beginning to leave her. She mentally scolds herself.

"She'll leave you," Caroline answers for her.

"She might," Andy responds calmly. "No one can promise that either."

Cassidy opens her mouth again, then closes it. It's enough to get Andy's attention, though, and she turns to her, holding her under her patient gaze. She tries again: "Do you love her?"

Finally, she seems taken aback once more, startled by the question. Both sisters turn their intent looks on her, challenging, anticipating. Andy, however, is looking somewhere off in the distance, taking a deep breath that shudders out of her. "I..." she begins, then breathes out, "yeah. I do," and it seems to take even her by surprise.

"I do," she repeats a few moments later, evidently much more at peace with the statement. She smiles, not necessarily at Caroline and Cassidy, who share a silent look between them. Trying to call _her_ bluff.

"Let's make a deal," she offers when no response is forthcoming, getting their attention again. "We're not gonna solve our little problem out here in the middle of the night. But what we are gonna do is not mention this little conversation to your mom, alright? And tomorrow morning, when you wake up, I'll be here. Okay? I'm not gonna sneak out; you deserve that much. Plus, I make a mean grilled cheese sandwich. Learned from the best."

Caroline blinks up at her, astounded. She was down to solve the mystery that's been plaguing her and her sister for months, but this is a little more than she bargained for. At her side, Cassidy's hands drop from her hips as well.

Despite her reddened, bloodshot eyes, her obvious exhaustion, Andy flashes them both a wide, bright smile that's much more genuine this time. She turns to Cassidy. "How's that sound, Cassidy?"

Cassidy's eyes widen. Caroline's jaw sags open. "I don't want your stupid grilled cheese," Cassidy mumbles weakly, once she's regained some of her composure. Maybe she's just tired; it would have been easier to corner her during the day, if given the chance. "It's fattening."

Andy, surprisingly, hums noncommittally. "I think you'll grow to like it." With that, she winks at them both and turns on her heel, quietly slipping back into their mom's bedroom.

Alone again, Caroline and Cassidy stare at the closed door. And stare some more. And finally, Caroline turns to stare apprehensively at Cassidy, asking without words, "Now what?"

"Let's go," Cassidy murmurs dejectedly, turning around. And Caroline, the pleaser, follows her. But she knows her sister better than anyone in the world, and she knows that, come morning, Cassidy will eat Andy's greasy grilled cheese sandwich and won't divulge any of the night's occurances to their mom and that maybe, just maybe, everything will be okay after all.


End file.
